


The deep and mysterious Gundham Tanaka

by numinuminuu



Category: Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Child Abuse, Emotional Baggage, Enemies to Friends, Past Sexual Abuse, Rape tag is for discussing sexual abuse, tanaka and soda discuss important matters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:08:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28848810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/numinuminuu/pseuds/numinuminuu
Summary: Where Souda and Tanaka share their pasts late st night.
Relationships: Soda Kazuichi & Tanaka Gundham
Kudos: 23





	The deep and mysterious Gundham Tanaka

Souda never thought he’d be sitting across a table from Gundham, talking about their deepest secrets as if they were discussing the weather. And yet there he was.

He isn’t very clear on how it started, it felt too surreal. He recalls walking to the restaurant at about 2 am to grab a snack from the kitchen, and found the self-proclaimed Overlord of Ice as he’d never seen him before: like a normal human being. He was wearing a loose shirt that reached his thighs, a pair of briefs and nothing more. His hair hung loosely from his head, parted at the side and curling at the bottom. Thanks to the lack of scarf and makeup, Souda got a full glance at the breeder’s face for the same time. He would’ve taken the time to analyze his features more carefully, if not for the redness surrounding his circular eyes. His eyelids were puffy and his cheeks glowing, clearly he’d been crying. 

Souda stood still for a moment, dumbfounded by the sight of Tanaka. He was feeding seeds to his hamsters when he looked up at him. Any other normal person would have jumped and tried to cover themselves from the mechanic, yet Gundham wasn’t no shade of normal. He sustained eye contact and grinned, as if having expected to be discovered sooner or later. He was just sitting at the table facing the door, after all.

And then, they shared some words Kazuichi can’t recall, probably something along the lines of “are you ok?” and “do you want to talk about it?”. Gundham spoke without many embellishments and metaphors, instead addressing to him with simpler phrases and a quieter tone. And, somehow, Gundham switched the conversation from him to Kazuichi, asking him how he dealt with his emotions. Kazuichi sat down in front of the sobbing man, and casually started talking about his coping. Most of the times, he hyper focused on his work to mute his own head, some other types he escaped from home for the night to go to some car dumpster to kick stuff around until his muscles gave out. And so, Tanaka spoke the question: “What makes you sad?” as if he was asking him what his favorite food was.

A multitude of images crossed his mind. His trust issues, his lack of girlfriend, his lack of money, his dad’s occasional fits of anger, his own emotional instability. Little by little, he started unpacking each of those reasons alongside Gundham, who gave his own insight about Souda with carefully picked words. At some point during his talking, a single tear crossed his cheek. He couldn’t say he was sad, he’d gotten worse about smaller things before. He was... emotionally packed. The way they spoke about Kazuichi’s issues was almost analytical, like they were discussing about dead bodies during a criminal investigation. Stating the facts as they were.

“But hey, why are we talking about my shit? You’re the one who’s crying here.” Souda said, wiping away the lonely tear. Gundham smirked again and looked away, focusing on scratching San-D’s head.

“It’s nothing you should concern yourself with.” He whispered, closing his sore eyes. “It’s not like a... mere mortal like you would comprehend.”

“C’mon man, I just exposed myself here. It’s your turn.” Kazuichi knew he shouldn’t have been so rough, but sometimes he spoke way to quickly. Luckily for him, Gundham was someone with thick skin, who didn’t mind forcefulness. “How was your place growing up?”

Gundham kept quiet for about a minute, looking off to the side, as if trying to collect his thoughts. Souda waited patiently, watching the hamsters run around the table while the breeder thought.

“I grew up alone with my mother.” He said softly, looking at the devas as well. “I never met my father, since I was the offspring of a simple hookup.” Souda unconsciously raised his eyebrows as he listened. “I can recall her multiple consorts during my life. None of them lasted long, but I never minded. As long as she was happy, she could see as many men as her heart pleased.” 

“So you never really had a dad figure? Dude, that’s... weird.”

“I had my grandfather. He and my grandmother had a small farm with two cows and a few chickens. Their milk and eggs were their main source of income. I believe they were the once who induced my love for beasts.” A small smile peaked from his lips. He gestured to his neck, as if trying to grab his scarf to hide it. Instead, he turned to the side.

“So, is your mom dating anyone now?” Suddenly, Gundham’s new smile fell apart into a frown. He kept his eyes diverted from Kazuichi as he scanned the room nervously. He grabbed his bottom lip between his teeth.

“No, it’s been a few years since she’s dated anyone.”

“Mmh? Why is that?”

“...Actually, that matter is what’s keeping sleepless tonight.” His eyes met Kazuichi’s. The mechanic noticed how they were both a light shade of grey, instead of the usually grey and red. “One of those men... deeply betrayed her.”

“Oh, was he a cheater?” Tanaka chuckled as he hid behind his own hair.

“I wish it was so simple...” He raised his sight and checked around the room for any pair of eavesdropping ears. No one was around. “Are you sure you want to discuss this matter with me?” He asked, returning his attention to Souda. He gripped the border of the table, making his knuckles turn white, yet his face remained as calm and unbothered as ever.

“I mean, yeah. We got this far already, right?” He chuckled. Gundham’s eyes opened slightly, he probably wasn’t expecting that answer. He was waiting for a polite retreat from the mechanics side, allowing him to keep quiet about his past. But instead, he walked straight into the lion’s den, and Souda was anxiously waiting for his response. Sometimes, even the great Tanaka messed up.

“I was sexually abused by this man.” He spoke coldly, as he had grown used to when addressing said manner. The pink haired guy’s jaw fell and his eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly recomposed himself to show strength towards his friend.

The mechanic kept still, trying to come to terms with the bomb Tanaka just dropped on him. Gundham Tanaka was... raped? THE Gundham Tanaka? The guy who spoke so highly of himself, who walked into a room as if it belonged to him, who saw himself above everyone. This man was sexually abused.

“It was a long time ago. I’ve gone to therapy, I was mentally treated, and now I’ve grown to accept such... event of my life as part of my history. There’s nothing to do about it.” He relaxed with a sigh, his shoulders dropped and his back curved. He grinned again. “That doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect me in occasion.”

Souda still kept quiet. Not because of anything but the lack of words. What was he supposed to say? Do? He never had to deal with such serious matter face to face before. So, to avoid saying anything bad, he kept quiet, hoping it was the correct option.

Suddenly, Gundham stood up, followed by the other’s sight. With a signal from his bandaged hand, his hamsters crawled up his arm to nuzzle against his shoulder. He retrieved the bag of seed from the counter and looked at the mechanic with his usual prideful stance.

“I must admit, discussing my dark past with you has been rather cathartic. I guess you mortals are intelligent in your own earthly ways. I must depart to my dormitory now, for my human form requires rest to function at its full capacity.” Gundham regained his speeches as he walked out of the restaurant, as if nothing had happened. “Farewell, my confidant.” And he left.

Souda blinked once, twice, and on the third time the second tear fell. Gundham Tanaka, he who seemed so outrageously weird and delusional, proved once again that he was as deep and mysterious as he claimed he was. 

Kazuichi Souda stood up, completely forgetting the whole reason he stepped into the kitchen and walked back to his dorm.


End file.
